NFL: Selecting the best player in each franchise’s history
By Brad Rowland
Cleveland Browns – Jim Brown
If this isn’t the biggest no-brainer of all, it is certainly in the running. In fairness to the great Otto Graham, who operated in an era of football that is no longer discernible to most fans, Jim Brown is the greatest Cleveland Browns player of all-time, and it isn’t particularly close.
For some, Brown remains the gold standard of what a running back is supposed to look like. He played with an incredible mix of power and speed, with a certain physicality that made him stand out above the rest in his era. For reference, Jim Brown led the NFL in rushing eight times in his nine-year career (a ratio that can’t be matched by anyone in league history), and he averaged 104.3 yards per game in those nine seasons, which easily ranks number one all-time.
The one (and only) knock on Brown’s career is a relative lack of longevity, but he exited the game on top to pursue other avenues, and he was the all-time leading rusher upon retirement. Now, Brown ranks “only” ninth on the league’s all-time rushing list, but he is universally thought of as one of the best players in NFL history, regardless of position.
Next: Dallas Cowboys